Revenues of casinos and racetracks in New Jersey have been gradually growing during 2021. Just like any other state where gambling is legal, the industry in New Jersey has felt the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic that started in 2020. But now, it seems that the industry is in for a rebound after reporting total gaming revenue of $4.74 billion for 2021.
Total Gaming Revenue, Casino Win Increases, Sports Wagering Revenue Dips
The Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) in New Jersey released figures last week, pointing out that casinos and racetracks in the state hit $404.1 million in total gaming revenue in December 2021. Compared to December 2020, when revenue halted at $312.9 million, an increase of 29.1% is observed.
Similarly, casino win in December last year increased as well. In December 2021, casino win hit $211.8 million, up from the $147.1 million a year earlier. The reported internet gaming win increased as well. While in December 2020, the internet gaming win reached $99.5 million, in December 2021, it jumped to $133.2 million, marking a 33.9% increase.
In contrast, sports wagering revenue in December 2021 did not surpass its value from December 2020. Back in November, sportsbooks in New Jersey reported $1 billion in bets. Generating $1.26 billion in total wagers, sportsbooks collected $114.8 million in revenue. However, in December, sports wagering revenue hit $59.9 million, representing an 11% decrease when compared to the $66.4 million from December 2020.
Year-To-Date Results Look Good but Cannot Be Directly Comparable to 2020
According to DGE’s most recent report, the total gaming revenue that casinos, racetracks, and their partners reported for 2021 was $4.74 billion. This marks a significant 64.4% increase when compared to the $2.88 billion in total gaming revenue from 2020.
Year-to-date results show that internet gaming win in 2021 has increased. While in 2020, the internet gaming win hit $970 million, in 2021, it increased by 40.9% to $1.37 billion. A significant increase was also observed in casino wins. While in 2020, casino win hit $1.5 billion, in 2021, it increased to $2.6 billion, marking a 69.1% increase.
Not unexpectedly, sports wagering revenue increased as well. It is important to mention that the 2020 sports schedule was significantly impacted, which is only one of the reasons why sports wagering revenue hit $398 million. However, in 2021, sports wagering revenue increased by 104.7%, hitting $816 million. With that in mind, the DGE did acknowledge that due to the COVID-related closures in 2020, the sports wagering gross revenue and casino win “for the year-to-date period ended December 2021 are not directly comparable to 2020.”
Last but not least, the DGE revealed that in December 2021, the taxes for gambling activities reached $42.3 million. On the other hand, year-to-date taxes for the period ending December 2021 from gambling in New Jersey have hit $485.6 million.